NGO sector: Reforms in energy efficiency are necessary

German government organisation Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the network of Schools of Political Studies from seven Southeast European (SEE) countries and the Baltic Environmental Forum Germany (BEF) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation on the implementation of joint projects on 4 December at the Hotel Bristol in Sarajevo, reports the Bosnian news agency Patria (NAP).

The event was organised by the School of Political Studies of the Council of Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina and GIZ. The Memorandum of Cooperation builds on previous agreements and marks the official start of the third phase of support for the Regional Initiative „Public Dialogue on Sustainable Energy Use in Southeast Europe".

Under this Initiative of the Open Regional Fund for Southeast Europe - Energy Efficiency (ORF-EE), financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and implemented by GIZ, and the German Federal Foundation for the Environment (Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt - DBU), two parallel projects have been supported related to strengthening the role of non-governmental organisations in public dialogue processes on climate change and energy efficiency.

The Initiative was established at the end of 2010 with the aim of encouraging public dialogue on sustainable energy use among members of parliaments, civil society, government, local representatives, the business sector and the media. Through dialogue, support from all sectors of society, as well as from political decision-makers, is expected to grow for initiating reform processes in the field of energy efficiency.

On behalf of the School of Political Studies of the Council of Europe in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Memorandum of Cooperation was signed by Mirza Ustamujić.